Congrats to all of the kids who promoted from 6th grade across Encinitas yesterday! I hope you had an awesome promotion day.
Coming up, it’s Bro-Am weekend! The 22nd year of Switchfoot turning Moonlight Beach into a free, all-day celebration of surf, music, and giving back to local kids. If you only do one thing this weekend, Saturday at Moonlight is it. But there's plenty more to do this weekend: a legendary alt-rock band at the Belly Up, World Cup soccer on the farm lawn, JDM cars and coffee in Leucadia, and — new this week — we checked out the speakeasy everyone's been whispering about.
🏄 The weekend at a glance
Weather. Not gonna lie. Even with the June Gloom, it’s great out there. Highs around 69° Thursday, 71° Friday, 70° Saturday, holding near 70° Sunday. Great beach-festival weather — bring a layer for the evening.
Surf. A steady summer swell in the chest-high range all weekend at Swami's: about 3.5 ft Thursday, easing to 3 ft Friday, back up to a cleaner 3.5 ft Saturday with a longer period, then 3 ft Sunday. Things get a little bigger as you head north. Water's a comfortable 65–66°. Get the latest from Surfline
Tides. Heads up for tide-poolers: the good low tides are very early this weekend (Sat 2:42 AM at 0.8 ft, Sun 3:31 AM at 0.3 ft), and the midday lows sit high (~3.7 ft around 1:40 PM Sat / 2:30 PM Sun). Not a great tide-pool window unless you're an early riser — better to plan beach time around the festival.
Sunset. Saturday 7:59 PM. Sunday 7:59 PM.
🎡 Featured: Bro-Am!
Photo from broam.org
Switchfoot Bro-Am Beach Fest 2026 — Saturday, Moonlight Beach. Dude, what a great day in Encinitas. The 22nd annual Bro-Am takes over Moonlight Beach for a full free day of live music (Switchfoot headlining, naturally), surf contests including the Rob Machado Bro-Junior and the Adaptive Surf Youth Program, vendor villages, food, and community energy. It's grown from a grassroots gathering into one of SoCal's biggest beach traditions, having raised over $3M for local youth nonprofits — this year's beneficiaries include Feeding San Diego, Rady Children's Hospital, Challenged Athletes Foundation, Monarch School, A Step Beyond, and Save The Music Foundation. Arrive early, bring a reusable water bottle (there's a free refill station), and plan to walk or bike. 📍 Moonlight State Beach, 400 B St, Encinitas 💵 Free, all ages (VIP passes and music-pit tickets available at broam.org)
Switchfoot Bro-Am Benefit Party — Thursday night, Viasat (Carlsbad) The weekend kicks off Thursday with the Benefit Party — an upscale rock 'n' roll party. Curated bites and drinks, live and silent auctions, and an intimate Switchfoot set, all funding the weekend's nonprofit work. This one's ticketed, and when I checked this morning there were still tickets available. 📍 Viasat, 6155 El Camino Real, Carlsbad 💵 Ticketed ~$300+ — see broam.org
🥃 New this week: Inside Anigma, Encinitas's new speakeasy
Last week, we got the chance to go check out Anigma—the new speakeasy from the same people who have turned the Roxy into Encinitas’ premier night out. It’s very mysterious—solve riddles, read tarot, drink cocktails. You enter through what looks to be a cute little shop on 101, find the clue, crack the code and enter through the hidden door.
Once inside, you’re in an ultra swanky speakeasy with ultra swanky cocktails. I tried the Anigma (a rotating creation developed by head bartender, Sam) and the Trinity Knot, an Irish whiskey based cocktail. Both were great.
The whole cocktail list is amazing, the bartenders are top notch, and the spot is unlike anything else on 101, including featuring a tin stamped ceiling brought in from Wyoming with legit old timey bullet holes in it and the foyer light fixture that they brought over from Keno’s. Stories abound! If you can get a seat, it’s a great night out in Encinitas.
Reservations available on Opentable up to two weeks out. But you gotta be quick, they fill up! They do occasionally have room for walk-ins, but I’d plan ahead. It's been pretty packed since they opened.
Finding the secret code.
Swanky.
Handcrafted cocktails.
🗓️ Day by day
Thursday, June 11 (tonight)
Bro-Am Benefit Party at Viasat, Carlsbad — see Featured. Ticketed.
Friday, June 12
San Diego International Boat Show This isn’t in Encinitas, but we really love boats. The boat show opens at Safe Harbor Sunroad Marina (runs Fri–Sun). One of the country's top 10 boat shows — worth the drive if you've ever daydreamed about getting on the water (like we have). 💵 ~$30/day check site for prices 📍955 Harbor Island Dr.
The Church: The Singles 1980–2025 at the Belly Up, 9:30 PM. The Australian alt-rock legends behind one of my favorite songs, "Under the Milky Way," playing 45 years of singles at the BellyUp. Great pick if you want music without the festival crowds. 💵 $40
🇺🇸 ⚽️ USA's World Cup opener vs. Paraguay, 6 PM — see the watch-party section below for where to catch it (Fox Point Farms' lawn party, Union Kitchen downtown, or stream at home). USA! USA!
Farming Fridays at Fox Point Farms, 9–11 AM. Hands in the soil, meet the farmers. Now that they’re not in school on Fridays, this is a great low-key morning with kids.
Saturday, June 13 This is Bro-Am day — Moonlight Beach is the center of gravity. Everything else is a bonus stop on the way there or a wind-down after.
Switchfoot Bro-Am Beach Fest — the main event. See Featured. Free, all day.
Wrongside Motors Cars & Coffee Vol. 5 — JDM Edition in Leucadia, 11 AM–2 PM. Japanese domestic-market cars and coffee in the N. Vulcan lot. (JDM = "Japanese domestic market" — imports built for Japan's home market.) Free, and a really cool Saturday-morning stop before heading to the beach.
The Samples w/ Shakedown String Band at the Belly Up, 9 PM. Breezy 90s alt-rock. True story…when I was in college, our intramural soccer team lost in the semi-finals of the tournament because over half our team went to go see the Samples. I was one of them. Totally worth it. 💵 $25 adv / $28 day of.
Open-air Yoga at San Diego Botanic Garden, morning. Flow among the gardens 🧘 Pre-registration $20, walk up $30. Discounts for SDBG members.
Sunday, June 14
Pablo Cruise at the Belly Up, 7:30 PM. Yacht-rock royalty ("Love Will Find a Way," "Whatcha Gonna Do?") — the smoothest possible way to close the weekend.
Inside the Hive: Beekeeping Experience at Fox Point Farms, 10:30 AM. Up close with the bees — a sweet, hands-on farm adventure for curious kids. ~$40
⚽ The USA's World Cup opener is Friday night — here's where to watch
It's finally here! We’re huge soccer fans at our house so we’re planning our watch parties. USA vs. Paraguay kicks off Friday at 6 PM (our time) from SoFi Stadium in LA — the U.S. men's first World Cup match on American turf since 1994. It's on Fox, and free to stream on Tubi and Telemundo if you'd rather host at home. This is a super fun watch-with-the-neighbors-and-friends kind of night. Here are a few spots to catch it:
Fox Point Farms — on the lawn, 6–8 PM. The most Encinitas way to do it: match on the big screen, drink specials, food, and outdoors at sunset. Free, family-friendly, dogs-and-kids welcome. If you want the communal-outdoor feel, this is the pick.
Union Kitchen & Tap — Downtown, kickoff at 6 PM. The most central spot in town, showing every match all tournament with multiple screens and full sound. They've got a run of World Cup cocktails (the 42 Press, Casa Negroni, and a "FIFA Smash") and are leaning into the Team USA match days. Go here if you want the proper bar-crowd roar when the U.S. scores.
Frontwave Arena — Oceanside, 6 PM. If you've got kids, this might be the pick. Oceanside's new arena is hosting an official USA Watch Party (presented by TrueCare) on the giant screen, with raffles, San Diego Sockers player appearances, inflatables, and mini soccer games. They're doing all three Team USA group matches. RSVP ahead — worth the short drive up the coast.
LEGOLAND World Cup Experience — Carlsbad, all weekend. Not a live match-watch, but for your soccer-obsessed kids, the park's running interactive soccer-skills games and activations throughout the tournament. A fun daytime add-on, included with park admission.
You should be able to get the game at your favorite local sports bar, so if you've got a go-to, grab a seat early; the USA opener will draw a crowd. Want the full countywide watch party rundown? Times of San Diego has a running list of watch parties across the county.
👨👩👧👦 Family-friendly picks
Two for the crew:
Bro-Am at Moonlight Beach (Saturday, free). Surf contests, music, and the beneficiary-kids moments are genuinely heartwarming. Pack a blanket and make a day of it — the obvious #1.
Farming Fridays at Fox Point Farms (Friday morning, free-ish). No school on Friday means hands in the dirt, meet the farmers, low-key outside educational fun.
🔜 Save the date
Cardiff Greek Festival We’re already planning ahead. Mark the calendar for Sept 12-13 — souvlaki, dancing, and one of the best community festivals around.
🤝 One ask
If this helped you plan your weekend, forward it to a friend or neighbor — that's still the #1 way we grow. And hit reply with your own tips: a pop-up, a show, a new spot you love. We read every one, and the best ones make the next edition.
See you at the beach. 🤙